Note to self (33 wks)

Now would be an excellent time to stop shielding Jonah from the impending arrival, and to stop feeling enraged when people ask him about it. Tonight I busted out a book I bought for him ages ago, called How You Were Born, and he seemed intrigued - probably because it was not 100% a "becoming a big sibling" book.

Also, a 3-year-old is much more capable of rising to the occasion than I think. We took him to the doctor for his annual checkup this afternoon, and instead of a long screamfest it turned out to be quite a nice visit. We can credit the pediatrician for having an incredible knack, but we've got to give Jonah credit for keeping it together, even after we were called in to the exam room immediately, before he'd had a chance to play with the trains in the waiting room.

Jonah "met" the baby this morning at my checkup, hearing the heartbeat for the first time. He was much more excited about the blood pressure machine, and the special chair that I sat in, the various parts of which he was able to move up and down with a fancy remote control. (Later, when the nurse at the pediatrician's office asked him what the baby's heartbeat had sounded like, he made a long, loud farting noise.)